KUCHING, July 6 — Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said he will review all 12 delayed water supply projects in Sarawak, as highlighted in the Auditor-General’s (A-G’s) Report (LKAN) 2/2024.

He said a similar review will be conducted for delayed projects in Sabah, as both states fall under his jurisdiction.

“There are two ministries overseeing water supply — Petra (Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation) and the Ministry of Rural and Regional Development (KKDW) for rural water supply.

“The main issue pertains to rural water supply. I will thoroughly review all audit reports, particularly those concerning Sarawak and Sabah under my responsibility, and we will address these issues at the respective ministerial level to identify the problems.

“The most important thing is to ensure that the delayed projects and programmes are completed,” he said.

He was speaking to reporters when met after officiating the closing ceremony of the Program Bantuan Lesen Memandu (MyLesen) B2 Peringkat Parlimen Petra Jaya at Dewan Masjid Al-Abyad in Taman Matang Jaya here today.

Fadillah said Sarawak and Sabah have requested that water supply projects valued at RM50 million or less be implemented directly by the state governments.

“This will be one of the matters presented to the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) Council, the date of which is being arranged based on the availability of the Prime Minister, Premier and Sabah Chief Minister,” he said.

According to Fadillah, the A-G’s report’s observations on his ministry, Petra, mainly pointed out weaknesses in project implementation, not misuse of power.

The A-G’s report revealed that 12 water supply projects in Sarawak and 24 in Sabah, with a total value of RM1.6 billion, have been delayed for up to seven years despite approvals being granted between 2016 and 2018. These 36 projects are under the Ministry of Rural and Regional Development.

The report highlighted that the delays have disrupted water supply in Sarawak and Sabah, leaving rural residents without access to clean and treated water.

Consequently, 32,229 households remain without reliable water supply, despite the appointment of consultants for all these projects.

The report added that the Rural Water Supply Projects (BALB) in Sarawak and Sabah have not met their objectives. — The Borneo Post

https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2024/07/06/fadillah-to-review-delayed-water-supply-projects-in-sarawak-sabah-highlighted-in-a-gs-report/142933